


Five times Kuroo Tetsurou almost confessed and the one time Kozume Kenma actually did

by mugen



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: 5+1 Things, Fluff, Idiots in Love, Kenma's POV, KuroKen Month 2016, M/M, all first week's prompts, first year Kuroo, middle school third year Kenma
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-06
Updated: 2016-06-06
Packaged: 2018-07-12 13:25:42
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,846
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7106695
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mugen/pseuds/mugen
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>In which Kenma waits (im)patiently and Kuroo is a hopeless idiot.</p>
<p>(A fic for the prompts team, homework, court, graduation.)</p>
            </blockquote>





	Five times Kuroo Tetsurou almost confessed and the one time Kozume Kenma actually did

**Author's Note:**

> Endless thanks to [Kay](http://archiveofourown.org/users/OnlyGirlInYourWorld/pseuds/OnlyGirlInYourWorld), my pre-reader, to [Mitsy](http://mitsouparker.tumblr.com), [Ray](http://archiveofourown.org/users/raykkenoha/pseuds/raykkenoha) and [Mara](http://drarrylocked.tumblr.com) for the cheerleading and support, and [ Kirsi](http://archiveofourown.org/users/Kirsi) for the beta.

1

Kenma should have expected the intensity of all the _“Kuroo-senpai”_ and _“Kuroo-san”_ cries when Kuro first visited their middle school team after graduation. He covered his ears quickly and tried to tune it out. It’s not that he was jealous, he was happy Kuro was here. However he hated to admit it to himself, he did miss having Kuro on the team. After all, he was the only reason Kenma kept on playing volleyball. If it wasn’t for Kuro’s insistence and all the childish pinky promises (that Kenma pretended to dislike) he would have stopped playing altogether. Kenma knew this, Kuro knew this, and even the whole team knew this. He got along with his fellow third years just fine, but their relationship was getting more and more strained, even after only a month. Kenma thought he’d be subbed out as soon as Kuro was out of the picture but their coach still kept him as the starter setter.

“Are you treating your setter well?” Kenma heard Kuro say. Kenma tentatively glanced at his teammates and Kuro. Kuro was all confidence and charm and Kenma just saw the first years getting a serious case of ‘senpai worship’ on him which made Kenma roll his eyes. Kuro will never get as cool as he pretends to be, Kenma thought. But that’s fine.

Kuro stayed for the entire practice and waited for him outside of the locker room.

“You looked good on the court,” Kuro said while they were walking to the train station. Kenma nodded. _But it’s not the same without you_ , he didn’t say. _But I miss you_ , neither of them said.

The train ride was a silent one. Kenma sat close to Kuro, thighs almost touching. He pretended to fall asleep so he could rest his head on Kuro’s shoulders. Missing Kuro was still a new feeling, something that he felt all the time and yet there were times when it was more apparent. Volley practice. Lunch. Going home together.

Before their stop Kuro woke Kenma up. He was gentle. A brush of fingers in his hair, against his cheeks, a caress and a slight shake of a shoulder. Kenma faked a yawn and rubbed at his eyes. The look Kuro gave him was warm and fond, and it made Kenma’s insides feel fuzzy. Kenma knew about his own feelings for a while now and he was aware of Kuro’s for even longer, yet he never wanted to act on it before Kuro was ready. Kenma wasn’t that sure Kuro even realized he liked Kenma in a romantic way—sometimes it seemed like he did but at other times the subtle hints flew over his head and he seemed so oblivious Kenma wanted to roll his eyes all the time.

Kuro babbled about his own team till they got to Kenma’s house. Kenma didn’t mind it at all, listening to Kuro being excited, or complaining about the first year libero. When Kenma wanted to say goodbye Kuro stopped him by tugging on Kenma’s uniform shirt sleeve. They were standing close, closer than usual.

“Kenma,” Kuro said softly. He was silent for a few seconds. “I miss going home with you. Our schools aren’t that far from each other and you always finish practice earlier and it’s not out of the way and-”

“I’ll come,” Kenma said, interrupting Kuro before he thought Kenma needed convincing. “I’ll wait for you.” Kuro smiled brightly and held up his right hand, pinky out.

“Promise?” Kuro asked as Kenma linked their pinky fingers.

“Promise.”

They stayed that way far longer than necessary. Kenma saw Kuro’s expression shifting, he was hesitating about something, but then he let go of Kenma’s hand and stepped back in one fluid motion. “See you tomorrow then,” Kuro said with a grin and a wave.

_‘Was saying ‘I miss you’ that hard?’_ Kenma asked himself with a little shake of his head.

  
2  
  
The ceiling fan barely helped with the summer heat. Kenma was sitting on the floor of his room, trying to cool himself by eating an entire box of ice cream, while Kuro was lying on Kenma’s bed upside down in his boxers and a tank top. Kenma was already in the thinnest shirt and the shortest shorts he owned and it was still too hot. He put down the ice cream box and with a sigh he shimmied out of his shorts. When he glanced back at Kuro, his face was more flushed than a minute before and he was pointedly not looking at Kenma. He felt his lips twitching with a smile. Kuro was hopeless.

“Want some ice cream?” he asked, waving his spoon in Kuro’s direction. Kuro sat up with a quick motion and turned to face Kenma. His face was still red and his eyes darted to Kenma’s lips for a second. If Kenma wasn’t watching Kuro closely, he would have missed it.

“One day we need to start doing the homework for the summer break. How about we take a look at it now?”

“The break started only four days ago, Kuro.”

Kuro stood up and rummaged through the drawers of Kenma’s desk and pulled out three notebooks. Kenma knew it was Math, Chemistry and English. _At least it’s not Japanese Literature_ , Kenma thought as he dug into his half melted chocolate chip ice cream. Kuro sat in front of him and opened Kenma’s Math homework. Kenma, keen on completely ignoring him, turned his full attention to what he was eating. He contemplated being mean about it—he could always distract Kuro when he wanted.

“It’s too hot,” Kuro said, probably to get Kenma’s attention. “I can’t stand Tokyo heat.” Kenma glanced at his friend under his bangs just in time for Kuro taking off his shirt. Kenma wanted to snort. Kuro thinks he’s being subtle, Kenma thought, barely able to stop a fond smile forming. What a dork. And to think that he used to be so popular in middle school.

“Do you strip like that in front of the girls in school too?” Kuro’s face reddened, then he smiled, that kind of smile Kenma was sure he still practiced at home in front of the mirror. It was something like the start of a cocky grin, but it was still in its starter form, like a baby grin. A tiny smugness that needed to evolve. _They do say fake it till you make it_.

“Only sometimes,” Kuro said and lifted one eyebrow. That was a little better. A bit more practice and it could be even called effective. Not that Kenma was going to tell him that. He’d use it as a weapon against Kenma.

“Sure, sure, as if they’re interested in you when they have way cooler senpai to choose from.”

“Who do you think is the coolest?” Kenma didn’t dignify that with a response. _You_ , a tiny voice in his head insisted and Kenma shushed it. He was almost successful. “C’mon Kenma, tell me!”

Kenma gave him a Look and got on with finishing his ice cream instead. Kuro got quiet and Kenma felt his eyes on him which made him feel self-conscious. There was tension in the air, tension Kenma rarely felt with his childhood friend.

Kenma saw Kuro scooting closer in his field of vision. Before he could pull it away Kuro grabbed the ice cream box. “Is there anything left to share?” Kuro asked, flashing another smile in Kenma’s direction. “You can have it,” Kenma said and shrugged. It was almost completely melted anyway.

“Kenma,” Kuro said softly, putting the box on the floor beside them and scooted a little closer to Kenma. He noticed Kuro’s gaze dipping to his lips then back to Kenma’s eyes. Kuro’s hair was all over the place as usual. He reached out to smooth it out a little, but Kuro had a permanent case of bedhead and whatever they tried to do with it, nothing helped. Kuro closed his eyes for a few beats then took a long intake of breath.

“Kenma, I,” Kuro started, and a blush started to form on his face. That’s it, Kenma thought, he’s going to do it now. He felt his heart beating faster and there was a flutter in his chest. He felt himself inching closer. “I-” Kuro started again, then his face closed. “I can’t stand this heat anymore, can I take a shower?”

“Sure.”

Kenma told himself he wasn’t disappointed.

  
3  
  
Kenma didn’t care. So what if this was his last game as a middle schooler, so what if they lost in the finals and they didn’t qualify for nationals. He just wasn’t sad, not like his fellow third years who were crying. Kenma didn’t care, or at least not until he saw Kuro waiting for him in the corridor outside the locker rooms.

“You were excellent,” Kuro said and handed him a box of orange juice. _But we lost_ , Kenma didn’t say. _It doesn’t matter_ , Kuro didn’t reply.

“Let’s go home,” Kenma said instead. Kuro looked up at him, surprised.

“But isn’t Coach-” 

“I don’t care. Let’s go home, Kuro.”

The trains were so full Kenma couldn’t reach any of hand bars so he grabbed onto Kuro’s uniform jacket at first, and when a sharp braking of the train sent them flush against each other, Kenma just wrapped his arms around Kuro. They stayed like that for the entire ride, even though the crowd of passengers thinned a little.

“I have a feeling they think I’m a girl,” Kenma muttered into Kuro’s shirt. Kuro’s response was an immediate “screw them”. Kenma let go when their stop came, but Kuro grabbed his hand and entwined their pinkies.

“It’s okay to care, you know,” Kuro said as he knocked his shoulders together, still not letting go of Kenma.

“I don’t.”

“You do.”

“No.”

“I know you do.”

Kenma ignored Kuro’s teasing tone. “Don’t you have something else to tell me instead of just screwing around?” That made Kuro stop. Kenma didn’t intend it to be that suggestive, he just wanted a change of topic. Kuro raked a hand through his unruly hair, clearly embarrassed. He opened his mouth to say something, then shook his head. Kenma sighed. One day, he told himself, one day Kuro will be ready.

  
4  
  
For two weeks before Kenma’s birthday, Kuro snooped. Kenma let him because he knew whatever Kuro was looking for was related to his birthday present. In the end Kuro did buy him a limited edition of an old game he’d always wanted, so his snooping was successful. Kenma never thought he’d have a chance to play that game, but apparently he kind of underestimated Kuro’s ability to find rare video games.

When they hooked it up to his old console Kuro sat closer to him than he normally did. Kenma took a sharp intake of breath. He was waiting for it. He promised himself he wasn’t going to push Kuro, but at times he wanted to. Kenma sometimes wished he was the type who could easily say “screw it!” and throw caution to the wind, and not over-calculate every single step he took in his head, to turning every decision he did in his mind for far too long, to have his anxiety, to… not get lost in his thoughts too much. Kenma wanted to be the type of person who, in his situation, would just slip into Kuro’s lap and kiss him already. But he was not.

“You know,” Kuro started, voice breaking the somewhat tense silence between them. “I just realized we’ve known each other for longer than we hadn’t. I can just say I’ve known you for more than half my life.”

Kenma nodded, but didn’t want to say anything. Kuro seemed like he wanted to talk about something. Maybe they’ll have that talk finally, he thought, but didn’t want to get his hopes up.

“I’m so glad you’re in my life, Kenma,” Kuro said, turned to him and pressed a kiss on the top of Kenma’s head. “Now prepare to get wrecked.”

Kenma let Kuro win the first round. _Me, too, Kuro, me too_.

  
5  
  
“There’s a tradition in England I think,” Kuro said when they tied up their omikuji to the pine tree next to the other hundreds of white strips of paper. Both of them got bad luck and they were the only ones out of Kuro’s group of friends. They were alone, Kuro’s teammates ditching them for meeting up with another team whom they were friends with. “At midnight you have to kiss someone for good luck, otherwise you get a year of loneliness.”

Kenma almost dropped his omikuji. He was certainly not expecting _that_.

“It’s way past midnight,” Kenma said, voice not betraying how fast his heart was beating, and how much he wanted to hide behind his bangs.

“Only by 15 minutes,” Kuro whispered and stepped closer. Kenma wanted to look away, but he felt himself freezing on the spot. He bit his lip and Kuro stared.

“Whatever,” Kenma said, surprising himself how disinterested he sounded, but stepped one tiny step closer to Kuro.

Kuro smiled. It was not a grin, or a smirk or anything Kuro thought of as cool. It was a private smile Kenma rarely saw directed at other people.

Kuro bent down and pressed their lips together. It didn’t last longer than three seconds. Before Kuro could step back Kenma grabbed his jacket and pulled him down to a kiss, an actual kiss. It was closed mouth and Kuro pulled away quickly, expression stunned and a blush forming on his cheeks.

“That was for me,” Kenma clarified. He felt warm and a little shaky. “If you aren’t getting a lonely year, neither should I.”

Kuro’s answer was cut by the arrival of Bokuto Koutarou. 

  
+1

Graduation was tiring. Lots of noisy people, chattering relatives and underclassmen, heartfelt goodbyes and all the pictures. Students posing with their diploma, with their friends, relatives—just one big loud, ever moving mass. Kuro pulled him away from the crowd just in time before he got too overwhelmed. They found solace behind the school, a place they used to hang out together lots.

Kuro flashed a smile at Kenma and hold out his hand. Kenma gave him a Look.

“Your button,” Kuro said, still smiling. “You don’t plan to give it to anyone else, do you?”

Kenma huffed. How ridiculous. When Kuro graduated many girls flocked him asking for it, but Kuro put on a quite believable act of saying his heart belonged to someone who didn’t love him back so he’s keeping the button. Afterwards, when they were at Kenma’s, Kuro gave it to him without saying anything. Kenma planned to do the same (minus the acting and the girls) but here Kuro was, asking for it right here right now.

Kenma nodded and started to fiddle with it. How hard do you have to pull at it? Kenma didn’t want to ruin his uniform, even though he was sure he’d never wear it again. He saw his classmates doing it. Did they prepare for it beforehand? Should he have done the same last night or in the morning?

“How about I give it to you at home? Like you did?” Kenma asked. _Don’t get anxious about something this stupid, it’s just Kuro_ , he scolded himself.

“Or you could do that,” Kuro said, and his smile widened. His eyes were shining with mischief. “How about you give me something else?”

“Isn’t me who should get graduation presents?”

“C’mon, the button totally counts as a present so I get one too.”

They were alone. Kenma was sure they were. Kuro was never going to get his shit together, Kenma thought. He was thinking about this a lot in the last few weeks and arrived to the same conclusion every time: if he finally wanted them to date he would have to be the one who made the first step. So he took a long, deep breath and stepped close to Kuro. Kuro’s body went still. For how cool Kuro pretended to be, he could be a dork a lot of times, in Kenma’s opinion. 

Kenma reached up and grabbed Kuro’s shirt to drag him to his level of vision. Kuro’s face was unreadable, frozen in a state of shock perhaps, but Kenma didn’t let that deter him. He reached out, burying his fingers into that untamable bedhead and pressed their lips together. Kuro didn’t react for a few beats, then he circled Kenma’s waist and pulled him close, close, close, deepening the kiss. It was hurried, it was clumsy, with their teeth clashing together once and it screamed of inexperience which made Kenma’s insides melt. When they broke apart Kuro was blushing so hard even the tips of his ears were red.

“Kenma, I-”

That was all Kuro said for a while. He was just staring at Kenma like he was an enigma or a miracle. Kenma chuckled. “It’s so hard to be in love with an idiot like you.”

**Author's Note:**

> You can find me on [tumblr](http://mahoushoujc.tumblr.com).


End file.
